Gigafactory

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Gigafactory is a generic term that refers to a manufacturing facility where components and products associated with electrification and decarbonization technologies are produced.[ citation needed ]

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The term was initially used by the electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla in 2013 [1] to refer to the company's first major manufacturing facility outside of the original Tesla Fremont Factory in California. At the time the facility was going to be called "Gigafactory" and no location had been chosen. The completed facility is now called Gigafactory Nevada (or Gigafactory 1) because Tesla has now constructed several other large facilities in multiple countries.

For the first gigafactory, Tesla partnered with Panasonic to produce battery cells at the same facility where the vehicles would be manufactured, [2] creating economies of scale and improving control of the battery supply chain. By locating two major manufacturing facilities within the same structure, Gigafactory Nevada notably became the second-largest building in the world (by volume) once construction was complete.

More recent Tesla factories such as Gigafactory Berlin produce battery cells, battery packs, electric drivetrains, and other components which are incorporated into finished electric vehicle assemblies at the same facility using advanced robotics. [3] This level of vertical integration allows Tesla to produce vehicles more quickly and reduce its exposure to supply chain problems. [4] Conversely Gigafactory New York produces photovoltaic cells and Tesla Supercharger assemblies but does not produce batteries or vehicles, broadening usage of the term.

The term "gigafactory" has also been adopted by other companies which are involved in the manufacture of electric vehicles and other clean tech products. Established automobile manufacturers such as Jaguar Land Rover and Volkswagen now use the term to refer to their own electric vehicle factories. [5] [6] Newer companies such as Stellantis have also embraced the term [7] by referring to four new "gigafactories" in France which will produce lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. Other companies such as Holosolis [8] and 3Sun, [9] which only produce solar cells and finished solar panel assemblies, also use the term "gigafactory" to refer to their facilities. The term is therefore understood[ by whom? ] to generically refer to large industrial facilities which are associated with the decarbonization and electrification trend.[ citation needed ]

Tesla Gigafactories

Gigafactory may specifically refer to the following Tesla factories: [10]

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panasonic</span> Japanese multinational electronics corporation

Panasonic Holdings Corporation is a Japanese multinational electronics company, headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka. It was founded in 1918 as Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works in Fukushima, Osaka by Kōnosuke Matsushita. In 1935, it was incorporated and renamed Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. In 2008, it changed its name to Panasonic Corporation. In 2022, it became a holding company and was renamed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla, Inc.</span> American electric vehicle and clean energy company

Tesla, Inc. is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company headquartered in Austin, Texas, which designs and manufactures electric vehicles, stationary battery energy storage devices from home to grid-scale, solar panels and solar shingles, and related products and services. Its subsidiary Tesla Energy develops and is a major installer of photovoltaic systems in the United States and is one of the largest global suppliers of battery energy storage systems with 6.5 gigawatt-hours (GWh) installed in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Automotive industry in China</span>

The automotive industry in China has been the largest in the world measured by automobile unit production since 2008. Since 2009, annual production of automobiles in China accounted for more than 32% of worldwide vehicle production, exceeding both that of the European Union and that of the United States and Japan combined.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla Fremont Factory</span> Tesla, Inc. factory

The Tesla Fremont Factory is an automobile manufacturing plant in Fremont, California, United States, operated by Tesla, Inc. The factory originally opened as General Motors' Fremont Assembly in 1962, and then was operated by New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI), a joint venture of GM and Toyota from 1984. The joint venture ended when GM entered bankruptcy in 2009. In 2010, Toyota agreed to sell the plant to Tesla at a significant discount. The plant currently manufactures the Model S, Model X, Model 3, and Model Y, employing 22,000 people as of August 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electric vehicle industry in China</span>

The electric vehicle industry in China is the largest in the world, accounting for around 57.4% of global production of electric vehicles (EVs) and around 500,000 exports in 2021. In 2021, CAAM reported China had sold 3.34 million passenger electric vehicles, consisting 2.73 million BEVs and 0.6 million PHEV, which is around 53% share of the global market of 6.23 million "new energy" passenger vehicles – BEVs, PHEVs, and HEVs. China also dominates the plug-in electric bus and light commercial vehicle market, reaching over 500,000 buses and 247,500 electric commercial vehicles in 2019, and recording new sales of 186,000 commercial EVs in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gigafactory Nevada</span> Tesla, Inc. factory

Gigafactory Nevada is a lithium-ion battery and electric vehicle component factory in Storey County, Nevada, United States. The facility, located east of Reno, is owned and operated by Tesla, Inc. The factory supplies battery packs and drivetrain components for the company's electric vehicles, produces the Tesla Powerwall home energy storage device, and assembles the Tesla Semi. If fully built out, the building will have the largest footprint in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla Powerwall</span> Home battery energy storage product manufactured by Tesla Energy

The Tesla Powerwall is a rechargeable lithium-ion battery stationary home energy storage product manufactured by Tesla Energy. The Powerwall stores electricity for solar self-consumption, time of use load shifting, and backup power. The Powerwall was introduced in 2015 with limited production. Mass production started in early 2017 at Tesla's Giga Nevada factory. As of May 2021, Tesla has installed 200,000 Powerwalls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla Powerpack</span> Large-scale battery energy storage product manufactured by Tesla Energy

The Tesla Powerpack was a rechargeable lithium-ion battery stationary energy storage product, intended for use by businesses or on smaller projects from power utilities. The device was manufactured by Tesla Energy, the clean energy subsidiary of Tesla, Inc. The Powerpack stores electricity for time of use load shifting, backup power, demand response, microgrids, renewable energy integration, frequency regulation, and voltage control. The first prototype Powerpacks were installed in 2012 at the locations of a few industrial customers. After July 22, 2022, the product was no longer listed for sale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla Model Y</span> Electric mid-size crossover SUV

The Tesla Model Y is a battery electric mid-size crossover SUV built by Tesla, Inc. since 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucid Motors</span> Electric vehicle company based in Newark, California, United States

Lucid Group, Inc. is an American manufacturer of electric luxury sports cars and grand tourers headquartered in Newark, California. Lucid vehicles are designed in California and manufactured at Lucid's factory in Arizona. The company was founded in 2007. Since April 2019, Lucid has been majority-owned by Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg</span> Tesla, Inc. factory

Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg is a manufacturing plant for Tesla, Inc. in the municipality of Grünheide (Mark) in the Brandenburg state of Germany. The campus is located 35 kilometres (20 mi) south-east of central Berlin and some 8 kilometres (5 mi) southeast of the Berlin state boundary at Erkner and Rahnsdorf. Proximity to Berlin Brandenburg Airport was explicitly cited as a factor in choosing the site. It is Tesla's first manufacturing location in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gigafactory New York</span> Tesla, Inc. factory in Buffalo, New York

Gigafactory New York is factory leased by Tesla, Inc. in the Riverbend section of Buffalo, New York. The factory, owned by the State of New York, was built on brownfield land remediated from a former steel mill. Construction of the factory started in 2014 and was completed in 2017. It produces the Tesla Solar Roof and Tesla Superchargers. Additionally, Tesla employs data analysts for its Autopilot software at the site.

Gigafactory Shanghai is an automobile manufacturing plant in Shanghai, China, operated by Tesla, Inc. Construction of the plant began in January 2019, initial production started in October, and the first production vehicles rolled out of the factory in December 2019, less than one year after groundbreaking. The main plant currently manufactures the Model 3 and Model Y. As of July 2023, Tesla says the factory has the capacity to build over 750,000 vehicles per year and is the primary production site for Tesla vehicles exported to regions without a Gigafactory.

The European Battery Alliance (EBA) is Europe's plan to create its own competitive and sustainable battery cell manufacturing value chain. Its purpose is to ensure that Europe benefits from the technological evolution in the Electric Vehicle Market and beyond. The action plan includes cleaner and more sustainable vehicles as well as safer traffic operations across Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giga Press</span> Series of aluminium die casting machines

The Giga Press program is a series of aluminium die casting machines manufactured for Tesla, initially by Idra Group in Italy. Idra presses were the largest high-pressure die casting machines in production as of 2020, with a clamping force of 55,000 to 61,000 kilonewtons. Each machine weighs 410–430 tonnes (900,000–950,000 lb).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gigafactory Texas</span> Tesla, Inc. factory

Gigafactory Texas is an automotive manufacturing facility in Austin, Texas built by Tesla, Inc. Construction began in July 2020, limited production of Model Y began before the end of 2021, and initial deliveries of vehicles built at the factory took place at an opening party called “Cyber Rodeo” on April 7, 2022.

Northvolt AB is a Swedish battery developer and manufacturer, specialising in lithium-ion technology for electric vehicles. Founded in 2015 by two former Tesla executives, it commissioned its first manufacturing plant in Skellefteå, Sweden in 2021 and has announced plans for five others in Europe and North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla next-generation vehicle</span> Low-cost electric car under development by Tesla, Inc.

The Tesla next-generation vehicle is an upcoming electric car under development by Tesla. The next-generation vehicle will be the third mainstream platform for the company, and it is expected that production volumes will greatly surpass those of the Model 3/Y platform. Although the vehicle has not been given an official name, the moniker Model 2 has been used to refer to the vehicle in the media. The car will be manufactured at Gigafactory Texas, Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg, and the planned Gigafactory Mexico.

References

  1. "What Is A Gigafactory?". InsideEVs. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  2. Frangoul, Anmar (6 July 2022). "VW and Goldman-backed battery maker Northvolt gets $1.1 billion funding injection". CNBC. Retrieved 8 July 2022. Gigafactories are facilities that produce batteries for electric vehicles on a large scale
  3. "Flying Through Giga Berlin". YouTube .
  4. "Tesla moves to expand Gigafactory Berlin on new 250-acre land". 26 May 2022.
  5. Partridge, Joanna (27 May 2022). "UK battles to keep Jaguar Land Rover's planned EV production". the Guardian. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  6. "ID. Buzz: Production start at German component locations". Volkswagen Newsroom. 16 June 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  7. "Stellantis Electrification Transition in Full Swing with First ACC Battery Gigafactory Inaugurated in France".
  8. "EIT InnoEnergy's Holosolis launches largest solar PV gigafactory in Europe | EIT".
  9. "Italy expands Europe's first solar 'gigafactory'". 7 February 2023.
  10. "Tesla Gigafactory - Tesla". www.tesla.com. Retrieved 8 July 2022.